The Legend of Zelda: Blood of the Damned
by Vrik
Summary: After departing Hyrule, Link is caught up in a war between neighboring countries, but the war goes deeper than he thinks, tapping into the bloody history in the lands surrounding Hyrule. He now must save this country from destruction, while protecting own
1. Old Legends Never Die

Well, here's my first story. Enjoy!

Better summery on profile

NOTE: _Italicized Writing_: a character's thoughts (mainly Link's) or other background noises.  
**Bold-Faced Writing**: another language (other than Hyrulian).

* * *

**Blood of the Damned**

**Chapter 1: Old Legends Never Die**

--

Link rode through the uncharted forest. The sunlight shone through the canopy of the forest, illuminating his rather dim path. The 17 year old youth left Hyrule 7 hours ago and was beginning to nod off in his saddle.

--

"_You're leaving…again?"_

_He smiled. "You know me Zelda. I never stay put in one place too long."_

_She smiled back. "You'll be back in a week." Link looked at her. There was confusion in his eyes. "You don't remember your trip to Termina? You came back after three days."_

"_Ah, yes…that." He shook his head. She has no clue, he thought. "Well, we'll see how long I take this time."_

_Zelda laughed. "In any case, take this." She unraveled a double-edged sword. "A gift." Link took the sword and held it. He pulled it out of the scabbard and twirled it around expertly._

"_This is an excellent sword." He said, impressed._

"_It was forged by the Gorons in Death Mountain. This is undoubtedly one of the strongest swords in Hyrule, bested only by the Master Sword." The sword had a silver blade with a blue and gold hilt. A symbol of a blue eagle was between the blade and hilt._

_He sheathed the sword. "Thanks Zelda."_

"_Just promise me this, don't get mixed up in any trouble Link."_

_He laughed. "I'll try."_

--

Link's head bounced back up. He shook his head. "I have got to stop falling asleep." He absentmindedly grabbed the hilt of his sword that he attached to the left side of Epona.

Link looked up at the canopy of the forest. _Wow, these are a lot like the forests in Termina_, he thought. He put his head back down and closed his eyes, Epona continuing to walk down the path. Just then, Epona reeled back and threw Link to the ground, causing the blond haired youth to hit his back on the ground. Epona darted off about 20 feet and then slowed down to a stop.

Link groaned and opened his eyes. He stared up at the canopy. _Great…_, he thought as he stood up. He looked around the forest to try and find out what spooked Epona. _Probably an animal_, he thought. He grabbed the back of his neck and slowly made his way back to Epona. He reached Epona, only to find two separate paths, one leading to the right, the other, to the left. There was no sign indicating which way led to where. _Oh boy, this is going to be intere…_

_CRACK!_

A wooden staff smashed Link in the back of the head. He collapsed to the ground, unconscious. His assailants, two men dressed in green and brown clothing, so they could be camouflaged against the forest, lightly tapped Link with their staffs.

"**Come on, let's go."** The men picked up Link, threw him over Epona, and headed down the path to the right.

--

Link groaned. The sound of people talking reached his ears. Link opened his eyes to find that he was in a tent. He struggled to sit up and leaned himself against a pole. Link looked around the lightly furnished tent. There was just his makeshift bed on the floor and two chairs on the opposite side of the tent.

A man wearing a black, sleeveless shirt with brown pants and black shoes walked in. He had blond, shoulder length hair and his sword was attached to his hip.** "Taran, he came too." **The man called to another person outside the tent.

The man called Taran walked in. He was wearing brown pants, a white shirt, with a brown vest covering it, and brown shoes. He had shoulder length hair too, but it was brown and pulled back into a ponytail; he had a sword strapped across his back.** "Is he okay? You knocked him pretty hard Ezra."**

"**I had to! We didn't know if he was a Kraïshan or not!"** Link stared at the two men.

_What are they saying, what language is that?_ "Um…do you speak Hylian?" Link asked.

Both the men immediately turned around to Link. **"What's he saying?" **Taran asked worriedly.

"**I don't know…maybe this damned Kraïshan is trying to cast a spell. He could be trying to kill us! I'll make sure I get him first!"** Ezra drew his sword and walked towards Link.

"**No no! No kill!" **Link said terrified. Taran and Ezra looked at Link with awe. _Did I just say that! How do I know their language?! I've never even heard it before!_

"**He speaks our language!" **Ezra said in awe. **"What's your name?"**

"**Me Link…"**

"**Yeah, he speaks it alright." **Taran said. **"Pretty badly though. We should take him to the shaman. He'll know what to do."**

Taran and Ezra walked over to Link, picked him up, tied his hand behind his back and shoved a sack over his head. **"Why you…tie up?"** Link struggled to speak their language.

One of the men laughed, but Link couldn't tell who. **"Because, if you are a Kraïshan, we can't let you see our home. It wouldn't really matter though, if the shaman decides that you are a Kraïshan, you're going to be killed on the spot."**

Link swallowed hard. He didn't understand much in that sentence, but what he did pick up was "Kraïshan," "shaman decides," and "killed on the spot."

--

A few minutes later, Link was shoved into another tent. He was forced on his knees and the sack was removed from his head. This tent was much larger than the last one and more lavishly, if not hauntingly, furnished. Along with it being covered with burning incense, an old man sat in a meditative state on the other side of the tent. _Well, I guess that's the shaman,_ Link thought. In front of the shaman were dozens of lit candles and an ornate, wooden carving of an owl.

"**So…you have brought a boy to me to decide whether or not he is a Kraïshan," **the shaman broodingly stated. _How did he know what we were here for?_ Link wondered, growing more and more restless with each passing moment. _Alright, if the shaman does decide I'm…"Kraïshan," then I have to make a break for it._ Link pulled at his bound hands. _"These shouldn't be too hard to break. If I break the ropes, I can punch one of the two men, and while he's recoiling, I can grab the others one's sword after he draws it, kill him, and then kill the shaman. If the one I punch isn't knocked out, I'll have to kill him too. Not a very subtle plan, but it'll do._

"**Yes, Master Shaman. But what's even more puzzling is that…"**

"**Yes, I know…he speaks Kura-Kitai. Don't fret Taran or Ezra, he is not Kraïshan." **The shaman finally stood up and turned to face them. He was an old man with gray hair down to his mid-back, dressed in a simple, blue robe, with a wooden necklace of the owl statue around his neck. As he stood, he picked up a wooden staff with the same symbol of the owl at the top of the staff.

The shaman smiled at Link, most of his teeth were missing. It took almost all of Link's self-control not to laugh at the way this man looked. The shaman looked up at Taran and Ezra. **"You man leave now, he is no threat. Untie his hands, if you will."** Taran and Ezra resisted at first, but eventually complied and left the tent.

Link stood up, rubbing his wrists. "Hello Link," the shaman said in perfect Hyrulian. Link was shocked. "You are quite a daring person, aren't you?" the shaman continued. "Having a plan to escape and, in the process, kill Taran, Ezra, and myself, even more than that, if I had said you were a Kraïshan, your little plan would have worked. Impressive. Now, may I first say, welcome to Kushluk. I'm sorry for the rude introduction. We are at war and no outsiders can be trusted. Second of all, it was destined you came here. The goddesses willed it, and so it shall be done…Hero of Time."

* * *

Well, there's chapter one! I know that there isn't much action in this chapter (or probably the next one either), but I want to get all the details and introductions out of the way so I can put more focus onthe action.

**Disclaimer**: I do not own any Zelda related characters / places / themes / etc.. Only _original_ names, characters, themes, and places.


	2. Unexpected Invitations

NOTE: _Italicized Writing_: a character's thoughts (mainly Link's) or other background noises.  
**Bold-Faced Writing**: another language (other than Hyrulian).

* * *

**Blood of the Damned**

**Chapter 2: Unexpected Invitations**

--

"Wha-. How-. I thought that-. Bu-. And the-," Link stammered as he tried to comprehend what the shaman said.

The shaman laughed, "Its okay Link. It's only natural to be confused on how I know this."

"But I was sent seven years back in time after Ganondorf's defeat. No one but me, Zelda, and the sages know that."

"Like I said Link, it was destined you came here. The goddesses blessed me with a dream on the events that were supposed to happen. I knew that you were coming even before you left Hyrule."

Link paused before speaking again. "Okay, lemme get this straight. The goddesses showed you a dream where I defeated Ganondorf, sealed him away, and was sent back in time. And they then told you that I was the Hero of Time that the legends spoke of and I was coming to your land." The shaman nodded. "Alright, I think I got it now," Link sighed in relief. "So what happens next?"

"Hmm," the shaman pondered thoughtfully. "I'm not entirely sure."

"…You said that-."

"I said that I knew you were coming. Never about what would happen after you arrived."

"……." The shaman chuckled at Link's confusion.

_PPPHHHHT!_

An arrow flew through the side of the tent and struck the shaman's staff.

--

"What's going on!?" the shaman screamed in fury.

"Kraïshan attack!" a random cry came.

Past the rows of tents in the desert lands, a horde of advancing soldiers and cavalry rushed over the dune. A battle cry reached their ears.

"**Link, your sword!"** Taran cried as he rushed by and tossed Link his sword. Link nodded to him in agreement.

Link saw ordinary men rush to grab any of the weapons they had to greet the on coming attackers. Swords, spears, pikes, and even clubs were used to fight back. There were no professional soldiers in the camp; he was the only one. And though they were outnumbered nearly 7 to 1, the men rushed fearlessly to battle. Link drew his sword and handed the scabbard to the shaman. **"Hold this,"** Link told the shaman. He turned to the enemy and rushed off to battle.

--

The soldiers' battle cries grew louder and louder as Link grew closer to the battle. He rushed by the mass of Kushlukian men and saw his first victim. The enemy soldier raised and brought down his sword to strike Link, but Link parried the man's blow. Bringing up his sword, Link sliced through the man's stomach. Grabbing his stomach, the man fell to the ground with blood seeping out from the wound.

An enemy soldier from behind caught Link in the back of his head with his elbow. Link stumbled forward a few steps, but soon caught his balance. He spun around and thrust his sword through the enemy soldier before he could raise his sword again.

Link looked to his left and saw a Kushlukian man on the ground with a Kraïshan soldier about to kill him. Link picked up the fallen man's sword and hurled it at him. The sword spun with deadly accuracy and struck him in the back, piercing his heart. He instantly fell to the ground.

"AAAAAHHHHH!" Link spun around to see a cavalry horseman charging towards him. Link quickly jumped out of the way as the horseman bolted past him. Link frantically looked around for a weapon to dispatch the horseman; he didn't find anything. Link looked back at the horseman, who, by now, had turned around and was charging again. Link jumped out of the way again, but this time, as the horseman rode by, he jumped up on the man, and threw him off the horse. Before the man could even stand up, Link thrust his sword through the man's neck.

Link stood back up and turned around. He saw another man rushing towards him, but before the enemy soldier could even raise his sword, Link decapitated him.

_PPPHHHHT!_

"AH, DAMNIT!" Link screamed as an arrow pierced his right leg. He clutched the shaft of the arrow and broke it off with a yell. He continued fight on, despite the blood slowly pulsing out of his wound.

Fortunately for Link, the fight didn't go on much longer. The Kraïshans slowly began losing ground and it wasn't long until they began a full retreat. Despite all of the fighting that went on before, this is when the full-scale carnage began. Each Kushlukian man swung his sword madly, trying to take out as many Kraïshans as possible. The Kraïshans, seeing the ferocity of the Kushlukians, began fighting more and more desperately. Kushlukian and Kraïshan fell alike until the battlefield was empty of fighting Kraïshans. The Kushlukian men cheered for their victory before going to collect their dead. If they could, the wounded Kushlukians slowly limped back to the camp, if not, they were carried. However, the wounded Kraïshans were not as lucky. The Kushlukians, angered by their losses, killed the remaining Kraïshans.

Link slowly limped his way back to the Kushlukian camp. **"Hey, Link!"** a man called out. Link looked back to see who it was: Taran. **"Thanks for saving me back there."** A glint of confusion passed through Link's eyes. **"When you threw the sword through that man."**

Link understood what he was talking about. **"You…welcome."**

Taran chuckled. **"I owe you one."**

Link nodded and Taran ran back to his comrades to help collect the bodies. Link headed back to the camp.

--

"**Let me help you with that." **Link looked at the young woman who gently pulled him over to the medical tent. **"Here, sit down." **The woman led him to a chair in the corner of the tent. Around the tent, bandaged men were laid on cots. Most men had bandages around their arms or legs, but there were a few with ones around their head and torso. Sounds of agony emanated from some. There were six women attending the men.

Link inhaled sharply and winced as the woman pulled out the arrow head. She put her hand over the wound and instantly, it began shining with a white, soft glow. A few seconds later, she removed her hand from his wound and it was completely healed, minus some blood around it. She looked up at him and smiled, grabbed a rag, and wiped the blood from her hand. The woman looked like she was in her early 20's. Her blond hair and blue eyes suggested that she wasn't from Kushluk. Her gentle facial features and delicate hands told the untrained eye that she was not accustomed to the gore from battle, but from her eyes and the way she expertly moved her hands, Link could tell that she had seen more than her fair share of battles.

"**You're not from around here, are you?"**

He shook his head 'no.' **"I'm from…Hy – rule."**

"**Oh really?"** she sounded surprised. "I'm from Termina," she said in Hyrulian with a slight accent. "I'm Sophia."

"I'm Link. So how come came here?"

"I wanted to see the world, ya know? See more than walls before I die. How'd you end up here?"

Link laughed nervously and grabbed the back of his head. "Well, I-I was traveling when I was uh…clubbed…and was…dragged here."

"…oh…" Sophia's face began twisting up with laughter.

"It's not funny" Link tried to defend himself. But it was only a matter of time before Sophia burst out in laughter. It took a full minute for her to stop laughing. "Finished?" Link asked; she nodded.

"**Ah, there you are,"** the shaman said as he walked into the tent. **"I believe this belongs to you."** He handed Link his scabbard and he sheathed his sword. **"Link, you need to come with me right away."**

"**Why?"**

"**The king wants to see you."**

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**Disclaimer**: I do not own any Zelda related characters / places / themes / etc.. Only _original_ names, characters, themes, and places.


End file.
